Wounded and Visitors
by sadisticmasochist kitsune
Summary: This is what ninja did. They trained, they fought, they died. They were known and not known.


Standard disclaimer applies

Wounded and Visitors

This is what ninja did. They trained, they fought, they died. They were known and not known.

The medic looked up from her charts as a trio of chuunin staggered past. She recognized them. She didn't know them by name but all of them had been to the hospital at least once before. She watched as another medic took over for two of the chuunin, leading the third into a room for healing. She opened the next door on her rounds. She was not surprised to see that the young chuunin in there was new and unknown to her. She was surprised to see that he had company.

This is what ninja did. This was how they spent their time. Either they were training, on a mission, or they were in the hospital. But they did not visit. The medic suspected that is was too hard to watch their comrades fight a battle with pain. Even harder watching them lose, to die.

'Most did not anyway,' she thought glancing at the girl seated by the bed. The girl glanced up, hopeful, and the medic shook her head, hating the crestfallen look in the girl's eyes. When she finished checking the chuunin, the medic quietly left the room. As she closed the door she thought she heard the small halting sobs from the girl. That chuunin she had never met would join his comrades on the Stone.

The villagers did not know what these ninja did. They fought for them, and they died for them. No matter how skilled a medic can be, or could be, they still lost ninja. No ninja ever survived to retirement. It was that simple. Konoha's soldiers got older, slower and weaker. The competition was younger, faster and stronger.

It was only a matter of time before all these ninja that she knew and yet did not know would be gone. Only to be replaced by more ninja that she would meet and still not know. It happened all the time. There were many that came often. Some that did not come so often but they still came once in a while. Others had come but now they would not come back. Their place was now a name carved on the Stone. On the missions the ninja had their comrade's company. But in here, they were alone.

However, not all were alone. Most ninja did not visit but there were some that did. She remembered one chuunin. This particular chuunin was one who did not come often. In fact it was the first time she had met him. She had been on rounds that day too. His chart said he was an Academy teacher. She glanced at his name, Umino. As she approached the room she was surprised to hear the noise. When she opened the door she was speechless. The room was full of young students as well as a few older ones. There was one, a genin, dressed in orange that stood out to her. Perhaps because the Academy teacher was not woken up despite all the genin's yelling.

"Naruto, back off. The medic's here," a jounin she hadn't noticed spoke up. He had been standing quietly in the ruckus.

"Hey, hey! Is he gonna be ok?" the genin demanded of her. The medic looked at him and in her mind she saw the young chuunin girl with no hope. This boy had had the same look as she did.

"Of course," she said with a smile. The boy's face took on a triumphant look.

"Yeah! That's right! See? I told you!" he shouted pointing at the jounin.

She didn't have the heart to tell him. Tell him that this teacher had been found unconscious outside the gates. That it had taken hours to get him stabilized. That despite Tsunade's efforts the teacher had yet to waken. That jounin had known, but for whatever reasons he kept quiet.

Even now as she stood outside the door of her next patient she smiled. It had felt good to see all those visitors. The academy teacher had eventually left as many often do. She hadn't seen him since. Perhaps he had gone back to the academy. Or perhaps he had gone on a mission. It didn't matter; she would not soon forget the day that made her glad to be a medic. She opened the door to another ninja she knew. This was the jounin from a couple weeks past. He turned his head to look at her, one visible eye half closed in boredom. Not even this jounin was lucky enough for a visitor.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, not really expecting an answer. She was not disappointed as he ignored her. She was still changing bandages when the door opened.

"Kaka-sensei!" the same orange clad genin from before running into the room, followed by two more genin and….the academy treacher.

The medic smiled to herself as she listened to the genin talk. Even the chuunin talked. The boredom was gone from the jounin's eye as he answered questions and more or less was part of the conversation. Maybe this jounin _was_ lucky. And perhaps the younger ninja was what this village needed if all it took was a room of kids to get one ninja to visit another. But for now this was a start.

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SMK: please review


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